Barbie: A timeline of inclusivity
When we think of Barbie, our minds automatically jump to a doll which represents the “perfect” white girl. For years the doll was made up of long legs, a flat stomach, a tiny waist, blonde (usually), wide hips, big eyes, and a lot of makeup. But times are changing, thankfully.
There was much controversy regarding the dangerous and unrealistic stereotypes that these dolls were pushing onto young children, not to mention the lack of inclusivity that the brand represented. There has since been a shift in the modelling of the dolls, so that they represent different skin colours, ethnicities, genders, body types, cultures, unique features, and people with impairments.
Luckily for us, redheads have never been ignored at Barbie – “Midge” Hadley Sherwood, a character on the Barbie TV series, was released back in 1963. She had long ginger hair and freckles. Today, there are many Barbies with ginger hair available for our carrot topped youngsters to buy.
In 2016, the company took a major step towards inclusivity. Barbie was seen to have a body type that was different to the original model. Tall, curvy, and petite Barbie’s were designed so that children can, “find a doll that speaks to them”. These dolls were created in response to criticism towards the unrealistic beauty standards that the original Barbie perpetuated, and included redheads! You can read more about the release of these dolls here.
In 2020, Mattel, released “Creatable World”, its new gender-inclusive line of dolls. Mattel, the company that created Barbie, debuted the dolls, “as the world continues to celebrate the positive impact of inclusivity”. The dolls come in different skin tones, with two wigs – which are of different lengths and in different hair types. They also include with several items of clothing that allow children to style the doll in a way that they choose to express themselves.
Only recently, in 2022, did Barbie reveal their new dolls, which represented people with unique features. For the first time, Barbie is seen to have a prosthetic limb, a wheelchair, or a hearing aid. The new Ken doll had the skin condition, vitiligo. The range of more diverse dolls aims to normalise different conditions, which allows children to see different parts of themselves being represented.
The Eastenders actor and Strictly Come Dancing winner, Rose Ayling-Ellis, appeared in the advertisement for the range of new dolls being released. Rose, who is deaf, was pictured holding the Barbie who wore a hearing aid. She described the step towards inclusivity as “really important and such a big deal”. In her caption, she wrote that, “When I was little, I would draw hearing aids onto my Barbie dolls to make them look like me – now deaf children don’t have to!”
Showing their further support of the LGBTQ+ community, in 2022, the first transgender Barbie was released. The doll was modelled after the Emmy winner, actress, and LGBTQ+ rights activist, Laverne Cox. Laverne Cox is viewed as one of the Western world’s most prominent trans activists, who regularly speaks out about her struggles as a transgender black woman. The Barbie was debuted with a donation to the Trans Family Support Services organisation who aim to help non-binary and transgender youth, together with their family members through their transition process. This donation was made by Mattel considering, “everyone deserves to feel safe, seen, and celebrated for who they are.” You can purchase this Barbie here.
Barbie dolls are consistently being developed to make sure children are able to see aspects of themselves in their precious possession. I wonder what Barbies will appear in the new film…
Reminder: The new Barbie film lands in theatres on Friday 21 July 2023.
Watch the Barbie (2023) Teaser Trailer and learn more about the redheads in the film